Chapter Text
Levi woke to unbearable heat and darkness. Distantly he noted that his cheek was pressed against something soft, that he was positioned awkwardly and uncomfortably. Grimacing, he shifted a little, his senses returning to him as he shook his head, noting that he could hear voices yelling. His head throbbed when he moved it, causing him to clench his eyes shut and hiss; what the hell had happened?
His memory was spotty, something that worried him a little, but he could remember a Titan attack, the sounds of trees cracking, explosive pain, then nothing. He frowned, tilting his head up and gingerly feeling around, attempting to assess his location. Levi froze and swallowed thickly when he realized that what he was touching was fleshy and the source of the heat, but he could tell that his limbs were intact. Either he had been swallowed whole and was stuck in a Titan’s throat or…
Reaching back he felt along the space behind him, searching, only to relax ever so slightly when he felt an unevenness, a dip, which told him he was, in fact, in a Titan’s hand, one that was pressed against something, most likely a body part, so either he had been kidnapped by a Titan shifter, which he doubted, or he was being held by Eren. He supposed that the latter option explained the angry, muffled yelling that he could just barely hear.
Levi shifted and slammed his fist against the hard surface of the Titan’s hand, the action a silent demand to be released. To his surprise the hand moved, causing him to lose his balance and tip forward, then grimace as the light of a fire seeped into where he’d been trapped moments before; it was far too dim to be daylight. A second, large hand gently righted him as Levi was lifted, his entire field of vision suddenly filled with the face of Eren’s titan form.
“Eren.” he grumbled, sounding disgruntled even as he reached up and placed his hand on the Titan’s nose.
“Corporal! Are you alright?!” cried one of the soldiers beneath them.
“Stand down.” he called out, watching the way the Titan’s eyes went heavy-lidded as he ran his hand over his nose.
“Sir—”
“Stand. Down.”
There was murmuring that he couldn’t hear, his eyes focused on Eren. Had he transformed and picked him up when he’d fallen? It seemed that he’d been unconscious for some time as the members of the Scouting Legion were obviously worried. Honestly he was surprised they hadn’t tried to attack Eren if he had been refusing to release Levi for so long.
“Idiot.” He reprimanded; it was his job to ensure Eren’s safety, not the other way around.
There was a low rumble in the Titan’s chest, but he seemed content now that Levi was awake. No doubt Eren would be embarrassed and apologetic when it came to his actions later but he seemed rather pleased with himself in that moment. With a derisive snort, Levi checked his gear, noting that it was mostly intact minus a few new dents and scratches.
“Put me down.” Levi demanded, crossing his arms over his chest. “And get out of there.”
Eren didn’t move, his expression unchanging, making Levi sigh and pat the titan’s nose again. He knew that Eren retained some form of intelligence when in titan form, though he didn’t know how much. Part of him wondered if it was really defiance that made the titan refuse to deposit him on the ground or something else.
Finally, after a few long moments, Eren moved, kneeling carefully and lowering his hand close enough to the ground that Levi could hop off. With a derisive snort Levi kicked the titan’s hand, looking disgruntled that it had taken so long for him to be lowered. Slowly Eren sank down further, folding his large arms and resting his face in them before, suddenly, the titan body began to expel steam, signaling that Eren would emerge soon. With a soft snort Levi launched his maneuver gear to access the Titan’s neck where Eren was emerging, gently drawing the drained teen back against his chest.
“Idiot.” he mused again, gently extracting Eren from the neck of his Titan form. “Don’t be so fucking stupid next time.”
There was no response, Eren’s head rolling to rest against his neck. Levi lifted his hand, gently smoothing back Eren’s sweaty hair and gave himself a moment to be silently thankful. After all, Eren had protected him when he hadn’t needed to, had gone to great lengths to do so, the least he could do was give the teen a moment of peace and a few silent words of thanks. He hoped that Eren knew what he couldn’t say.